Saudi Arabian Airlines (SAUDIA), the national carrier of Saudi Arabia, began operating nonstop flights between the airline’s hub in Jeddah and the Iraqi capital city of Baghdad on Monday. The route will commence as a daily service until November 15, with double-daily frequency thereafter. A single-class Airbus A330 will be deployed on the route, featuring […]
By John Lee. The Washington Post reports that a former DynCorp International employee has admitted to helped cheat the US State Department out of millions of dollars in Iraq. Jose Rivera, aged 57, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud, acknowledging that he helped convince his employers to rent a camp at Baghdad International Airport at […]
By John Lee. Officials at Baghdad International Airport have reportedly intercepted a shipment of dollars and euros worth a total of $500m (£389m). Writing in The Independent, Patrick Cockburn claims the cash was contained in 23 large bags unloaded from a Qatari plane, and was intended as a ransom for 24 Qataris, several of them […]
By John Lee. Iraq Duty Free has reportedly had its exclusive duty free contract at Baghdad and Basra airports extended by ten years to 4th March 2029. According to The Moodie Davitt Report, the contract was awarded by the Iraqi Civil Aviation Authority (ICAA) and Ministry of Transport to Iraq Duty Free’s parent company Financial […]
By John Lee. Turkish Airlines has announced that it has added a new flight destination operated between Baghdad and Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen International Airport. Beginning October 25th, roundtrip flights between Istanbul and Baghdad will be operated 2 times per week in both directions till November 23rd, and will be daily as from that: (Source: Turkish […]
Iraq’s youngest airline, FlyBaghdad, is in talks to start flying to Dubai and plans to launch European routes in early 2016, according to a report from Gulf News. The airline’s Regional Commercial Manager, Mohammad Abdali, told the news agency that the Iraqi-owned airline started domestic flights to Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, Najaf and Basra from its hub […]
By John Lee. Serco, the UK-based international service company, has announced a 1 year contract extension with the Iraq Civil Aviation Authority (ICAA). The contract covers a full range of services including the continued development of Air Traffic Services and Academy Training at Baghdad International Airport. According to a statement from Serco, the partnership between […]
By John Lee. Several airlines have suspended flights to Baghdad on Tuesday after bullets hit an airplane as it was landing at Baghdad International Airport. Reuters reports that two passengers were slightly injured when three or four bullets hit the body of a flydubai plane carrying 154 passengers on Monday evening. It was not known […]
By John Lee. Iraq Duty Free has reported a 16 percent increase in sales in 2014, despite the security crisis that forced the operation’s closure between June and September. The company, which operates the duty free business at Baghdad International Airport, attributed the growth to "renovation of points of sales, increased retail space and modern […]
By John Lee. The United States is now far more open to Iraqi requests for increased military support to fight ISIS, The Wall Street Journal reports. Previously, initiatives to sell arms and rapidly transfer foreign military sales such as F-16s and Hellfire missiles have been slowed by concerns in Congress regarding Nouri-al Maliki's authoritarian style of leadership. […]
By John Lee. Serco, the international service company, in cooperation with its Iraqi partner Al Burhan Group, has signed a new agreement with the Iraq Civil Aviation Authority (ICAA) to continue providing Air Traffic Control (ATC) services, training and support at Baghdad International Airport and extending our presence in Iraq. Serco has been providing these […]
By Omar al-Shaher for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. In light of Iraq’s complicated political and security climate, even the most optimistic could not expect Baghdad International Airport (pictured) to have 125 flights — even including both arrivals and departures […]
